Having the Faith to Walk on Water
Today, we finally get to the famous story of Jesus, and Peter, walking on water. This often-retold account gives us three very important lessons we need every day of our lives. The first lesson we see occurs when the disciples cry out in fear at what they believe to be a ghost. We can’t fault them for their fear. They were, afterall, in the middle of one of the sudden and severe storms the Sea of Galilee is known for. With the wind whipping around them and the waves crashing into the boat, I doubt they expected to see anyone… much less someone walking on the water. (Not that calm waters would make the feat less miraculous.) They responded as any of us would, they cried out.
When did fear become a bad word in Christian circles? When did the presence of fear come to mean a lack of God’s presence? Saul feared being king and yet God chose him. Gideon feared going into battle and yet God led him. David feared his enemies and yet God protected him. Fear happens. It is a part of life. If we are honest, we all struggle with moments of fear. I shared one of my fears with a friend of mine recently, and she had a beautiful response. She commented that it is our uncertainty in our abilities that enables God to use us more fully. When we are afraid, we know we can do nothing without God. When the disciples cried out in fear, they were not chastised by Jesus. Rather, he immediately dispelled their fears simply by showing up and encouraging them. Instead of seeing fear as a weakness, let us see it as an opportunity… not for us to be seen as brave but for God to take control of the situation and shine.
The next two lessons we read surround Peter and his acts of faith and doubt. The first one comes when we hear Jesus tell him, “Come.” Peter wasn’t ready for such a miracle. Jesus knew he would falter; still, he gave Peter the opportunity to grow in faith. God will never hold us back from exercising our faith, and neither should we. If Peter had not gotten out of the boat, he would have always wondered what would have happened, and we most likely would not devote so many sermons to his experience. His faith, though still lacking in strength and longevity, would have been weaker without the experience. Certainly, there were times when Peter had to have looked back on this moment and felt a bit braver because of it. Let us not hold ourselves back from stepping out in faith because we don’t feel we are strong enough. Faith isn’t about our strength or our abilities. Faith is all about God’s strength, His power, and His ability to do unbelievable things.
This leads us to our last lesson of the day: when doubt creeps in and we begin to faulter, Jesus is right there to immediately rescue us. Peter gives us a great description of doubt. He took his eyes off Jesus and began to pay attention to the wind and the waves. Speaking of doubt, R.T. France once said, “Doubt is literally ‘be divided in two’; true faith is single-mindedly focused on Jesus.” Each of us have times of doubt. As painful as these moments can be, we can chase them away my redirecting our full attention back to God. Is there a storm? Yes, but God controls the wind. Is the enemy pounding on your door? Maybe, but greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world! We don’t have to be stronger than the situation; we need only stay focused on our God. However, when we fail or start to sink, God is right there to immediately pick us back up again. Scripture only says that Jesus caught him and then “they got into the boat.” I like to think that after Jesus caught Peter, the two of them walked hand-in-hand back to the boat. I don’t really see Peter as the kind of guy who would have jumped onto Jesus’ back and been carried to the boat. Perhaps that is a bonus lesson: when your scared, just hold your Savior’s hand. Life can be trying and difficult, but God is always good. He is always faithful and ever watchful. We can have faith because of who God is, not because of what we think we can do.
(Written by Keegan Harkins.)
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